President Donald Trump’s AI Chief has warned that Israel could consider a nuclear strike as the Iran war continues to spiral out of control.
David Sacks, a Silicon Valley investor and the man appointed by Donald Trump to oversee artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency policy, has issued a stark warning about the escalating war with Iran, raising the alarming possibility that Israel could even contemplate using a nuclear weapon if the conflict continues.
Speaking on the All-In Podcast, Sacks laid out what he described as the dangerous consequences of an increasingly aggressive military strategy in the region. Discussing the growing conflict, he cautioned the situation could push Israel into desperate measures.
“Israel could get seriously destroyed,” he said. “And then you have to worry about Israel escalating the war by contemplating using a nuclear weapon.”
The warning comes as fighting across the Middle East intensifies following sweeping strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran, which killed the country’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
The consequences have been immediate and widespread. Civilian and military casualties have been reported across the region, travellers have been stranded as flights are disrupted, and global oil prices have surged amid fears the war could spread further.
Meanwhile, Trump has delivered mixed messages about how long the conflict might last. During his podcast appearance, Sacks argued that now would be the ideal moment to declare victory and pull back. “This is a good time to declare victory and get out,” he said. “And that is clearly what the markets would like to see.”
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However, he warned some voices – particularly within the Republican Party – are pushing for the opposite. “I just want to lay out, I think, some of the risks of what an escalatory approach could entail,” he said, describing a “faction of people” that want the conflict to intensify.
Sacks outlined a number of potential dangers if the war drags on, including attacks on oil and gas infrastructure, damage to vital water facilities, and retaliatory strikes by Iran against Gulf states if their energy exports are targeted.
He also pointed to the mounting pressure on Israel itself as the fighting continues. He said: “It’s hard to know exactly how much damage Israel is taking right now. We’re only two weeks into this. If this war continues for weeks or months, then Israel could just be destroyed.”
Sacks added that the prospect of Israel contemplating nuclear weapons would represent a disaster for the region and beyond. It would be “truly catastrophic” he said, warning there are “a lot of really frightening scenarios about where escalation could lead”.